Dr Jess Berentson-Shaw: How to talk about COVID-19
stories to help Good Decision-making and Action in TIMES of crisis
Rāapa 8 Paengawhāwhā - Wed 8 April
In this hui, Dr Jess Berentson-Shaw shares with us some tools we can use to help ensure that the way we talk about COVID-19 (and other national crises) is empowering, not harmful, for our audiences and how they respond.
Jess starts with a brief introduction to current understandings of how people process information and the barriers to getting the best knowledge at the heart of people's decision making. She then goes into the “five building blocks of strategic communication” - tools that communicators can use to deepen thinking and encourage good-decision making. Jess also discusses the role of audience, vision, values, better explanations and messengers with reference to COVID-19 specific issues.
About Dr Jess
Dr Jess Berentson-Shaw is a public narrative researcher and advisor. She gained her PhD in Health Psychology from Victoria University of Wellington in 2003. In roles across government and the not for profit sectors she has focussed on placing best knowledge and equity at the heart of decision-making.
In 2017 Jess co-founded The Workshop with Marianne Elliott. She now researches communication and narrative strategies that engage, deepen people's thinking, and improve decision-making. She teaches researchers, policy makers and advocates how to shift their narratives to motivate action on our big social and environmental challenges.
Jess is author of A Matter of Fact. Talking Truth in a Post-truth World (2018, Bridget Williams Books) and the How to Talk about COVID-19 guide (2020, The Workshop).
This hui is run in partnership with The Workshop - ngā mihi nui.
